Reception: Saturday, February 21, 3:00–5:00 p.m.

This art exhibition features works by three local artists who have created new work using materials from the Poughkeepsie Journal photo archive. Onaje Benjamin’s photographic collages highlight the importance of documenting the tradition of social justice-centered conflict in the Hudson Valley. Emilie Houssart worked with the collection of original metal printing plates, reprinting images that have fresh resonance today. Through a meditative “consciousness of action,” Xuewu Zheng processed piles of old newspapers into an installation containing vast amounts of embedded local history. Collectively, this group of works asks: How are records of “public interest” selected, and by whom? How do they move in and out of public consciousness, and what is their value now?

This exhibition is held in conjunction with The Vassar Institute for the Liberal Arts Signature Program “Lessons From the Poughkeepsie Journal Photo Morgue: Empowering Communities to Preserve Their Visual Histories” to be held March 6–7, 2026.

Artists:

Emilie Houssart

Emilie Houssart is a Dutch-American artist and curator. Her work explores attitudes toward land in New York through installation, performance, drawing, and printmaking. Her initiative, The DIRT Project, invites play with earth, linguistics, and identity. Recent presentations include print shows in New York, Connecticut, the U.K., and Rep. of Korea; and public installations at Urban Soils Institute, NY; Lower Manhattan Cultural Center; the Dorsky Museum & Walkill Valley Land Trust, New Paltz, NY; and Frans Masereel Centrum/Koningsbos, Belgium. She is a lecturer, Sustainability Faculty Fellow, and member of the community collective Eddy at SUNY New Paltz.

Onaje Benjamin

Born in 1948, Onaje Benjamin was destined to be drawn into the activism evolving out of the anti-war and civil rights movements of the 1960s. Being of African American and Caribbean descent and raised in Harlem provided a rich cultural foundation for Onaje to develop his creative framework. While pursuing a career as a community organizer, activist, and social worker, he earned degrees in liberal arts and social work. Onaje began his photographic work in the 80s with film cameras. His work has been shown in the Mid-Hudson Valley, New England, and New York City. Awards include a solo show at the Woodstock Artists Association and Museum and the Lelani Claire Award for Outstanding Achievement in Photography.

Xuewu Zheng

Xuewu Zheng was born in Heilongjiang Province, China. He received a BFA from Harbin Normal University in China and an MFA from SUNY New Paltz in the United States. He currently lives in New York. Zheng’s work has been exhibited throughout Asia, Europe, Australia, and the United States, and is held in international collections at the National Art Museum of China; Kaethe Kollwitz-Museum-Berlin, Germany; the Australian Embassy, China; Woo Jae-Gil Art Museum, Korea; Ackland Art Museum, Guilford College, The Turchin Center for Visual Arts, United States; and Gwangju Art Museum, Korea.

Full bios are available on the “Lessons From the Poughkeepsie Journal Photo Morgue” webpage.